The Board of Curators set out in 2011 to hire the 23rd UM System president with the assistance of an advisory committee consisting of faculty and students — but it’s unclear if the board took their opinions into account.

Former curator Fred Hall: “The president has got to be a leader, he’s got to be a person of strong concepts of the role of academia, and he’s got to have an empathy for faculty, students and that sort of thing.”

Board of Curators chairwoman Pamela Henrickson: “We want candidates who are going to dig in and do the work and see an opportunity to make a difference in their own careers, on the campus, and in the country at large.”